Slipped My Mind

I had a hard time falling asleep last night because I was fixated on the fact that I had forgotten a word for something. Even though I kept telling myself, "Go to sleep, the word will come to you in the morning," I could not let it go. Not because I didn't think that I would be able to figure it out easier in the morning - but because in the morning I might forget I was even searching for it.

A big piece of very stiff paper. Usually around 2' x 3' or so. It comes in a variety of colours. I buy it at the dollar store. Often used to create large posters or presentations, you can stick things to it (like pictures) and/or write on it (usually with markers.)

There was absolutely no reason why I need to figure out the name of this large stationary item at 10:30pm last night. I have no intentions of buying some any time soon. No one was talking about it. It just came into my mind and I could not remember the word. I went through a ton of options, some of them I knew were names for other/similar things, some I am pretty sure were not things at all, but everything I could think of was wrong: big paper, hard paper, hard board, card board, poster board, poster paper...

Then, as soon as I sat down at my desk this morning it popped into my head! (Just as I had been telling myself last night that it would.) It is called Bristol Board. When it first came to me I wondered if that was the brand name, like Bic, or when people say Kleenex but really mean facial tissue. I looked it up and it isn't a stationary brand, it is named after a city in England.

I wonder why it bothered me so much that I could not remember the name. I did just finish the book Still Alice by Lisa Genova so maybe it was a subconscious fear of early-onset Alzheimer's. Though I think this type of 'forgetting' is common at all ages, with healthy people. Just with aging I might be more worried about the capabilities of my mind. Or, I am just bugged by things like that, driven by the desire to know things - and know them instantly.

Ironically, at the start of writing this post I thought to myself, "Okay, so I figured out the thing from last night, but what is that smaller, slightly stiff, paper that comes in lots of colours. You use it for cutting and pasting." Of course it wasn't quickly coming to me, so I tried the technique of just writing out the post and hoping it would come to me later. It did - construction paper.